Laura Kalambokidis
Laura Kalambokidis is Minnesota's State Economist. In that position, she heads the Economic Analysis unit at MMB, which is responsible for producing and presenting the state's revenue and economic forecasts. Laura is also a professor in the Department of Applied Economics and an extension economist at the University of Minnesota, where she teaches public sector economics and does research on a range of federal and state tax policy issues. Laura was a member of the Minnesota State Budget Trends Study Commission in 2007-08 and the Minnesota Tax Expenditure Review Study Group in 2010-11. Prior to assuming her position at the university, she was a financial economist in the Office of Tax Analysis in the U.S. Department of Treasury in Washington, D.C., where she provided economic analysis of tax policy issues and developed models to estimate the revenue effects of proposed tax changes. Laura has been Minnesota State Economist since 2013. She holds a PhD in Economics from the University of Michigan and an undergraduate degree in Economics from the University of Minnesota.
Steve E. Russell
Mr. Russell is a Co-Manager of the Emerald Finance & Banking Innovation Fund. Prior to joining Emerald in 2005, Mr. Russell founded Greenwood Advisers, LLC, a registered investment adviser. Previously, he served as Managing Director of iNetworks, LLC a private equity firm located in Western Pennsylvania. Prior to joining iNetworks, LLC, Mr. Russell served as Senior Vice President and Portfolio Manager of Emerald Advisers, where he served as Manager of the Emerald Technology Fund and co-manager of the Emerald Select Banking Fund. He was also a Principal and Founding Partner of Emerald Venture Capital. Mr. Russell served as Senior Private Equity Analyst for the Pennsylvania Public School Employees’ Retirement System (PSERS), where he administered PSERS’ $1.2 billion commitment of private investments, including leveraged buyouts, distressed investments, mezzanine and growth equities. From 1996 to 1997, he administered PSERS’ $400 million Developmental Fund and $100 million Absolute Return Program. Mr. Russell serves on the Board of Arbitrators for the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (FINRA), and has appeared on CNBC, Bloomberg Television and other investment oriented programs. He has been quoted in various international media, including The Wall Street Journal, Smart Money Magazine, Bloomberg Business News, Dow Jones News Service and Market Watch. Mr. Russell received both his JD and MBA degrees from Temple University and a BA degree in Banking and Finance from Morehouse College. Mr. Russell is licensed to practice law in the State of New Jersey and has passed the NASD Series 63 exam.
Eric Foster
Coming soon.